<p>Wooo hooooo Kayla!!!!! Allright!!!!</p>
<p>Congratulations, Kayla! You did it! You should be very proud of yourself, as all of us are proud of you. Way to go.</p>
<p>you guys are freaking me out....no housing for freshmen...I never heard of such a thing. We find out on Monday if my d is in the dance program. If there are no dorms I dont think she will go there. Anyone out there know the deal? Hey Kaylagurl I got your message...If Caroline decides on MSU you will definatley hear from her...congrats!</p>
<p>Kayla!!! Happy for you from me and Eva!!! And you will be close to each other in New Jersey!</p>
<p>Lisa G, there is housing for Freshmen. There just may not be on-campus housing. The problem is they're expanding too fast and taking more and more students than they can accommodate. They're not expanding in necessarily good ways, just in ways they can add to brochures to get more students. The dorm that most Theater students get placed in, Freeman Hall, has been without heat and hot water for about four years. They haven't really attempted to fix it. This year they promise to finally include $50k in the budget to fix the heat in Freeman, but not the hot water. Nobody is holding their breath on it though. In the meantime they have added multi-million dollar private suits for the President Susan Cole that overlooks Manhattan as well as a multi-million dollar coffee house to the library that has a color changing wall. Anything for a brochure and to make the administration comfortable and looks good in a brochure, students be damned. For less than the cost of one classroom they could have fixed the problem 4 years ago, but they refused. Not a priority.</p>
<p>Because they accept more students than they have housing for, they set up an arrangement with a hotel the next town over (a few miles away). These hotels are used as dorms. There used to be buses that went back and forth every 2 hours, but they decided that was too expensive so they cut it down to one 7am bus and they usually send a bus in the evening, but not always. So using the buses is scary if you get placed in the hotels.</p>
<p>The biggest housing problems aren't when you're a freshman. They're the following year. There system used to be a fairly simple one. They set aside three days at the end of the year. The first day is for students to sign up for their current room. The second is for students to sign up for a different room in their building and the final day is for students who wish to change dorms.</p>
<p>The first day you're guaranteed your own room, since nobody can sign up for any room other than their own. If you choose to wait to change your room (For example you get an inside room in Blanton that has no air conditioning and you want to move to the outside room so you at least have a window and fresh air) you lose the chance of signing up for your own room. The hours you sign up for your room is usually between 11am - 3pm or so (the more credits you have the sooner you can sign up). You have to find time between classes and wait on line.. usually takes a couple hours or so. By the time you get to sign up for another room in your dorm they had already zoned off spots for freshman. So right off the bat if you didn't sign up for your own room it could be gone for incoming freshman or someone else could have taken it. If your dorm gets filled up or you can't get a room in your dorm you have to come back the next day and pray to get a room in another dorm. The next day typically all they have left are rooms for the hotels... IF you're lucky. I had a friend who was a theater major who was living in Blanton and wanted to get placed in Freeman with all her friends, thinking it wouldn't be a problem because Freeman has no heat or hot water and nobody in their right mind would want to move there. However, she lost her own room and was not able to find ANY room at all and had to take a year off from school (she was from out of state). Montclair did not care that she was a junior. So essentially once your freshman year is over your housing was scammed away from you with the promise that you could change rooms later to only be told they reserved the rooms that weren't pre-selected for freshman who had written guarantees of housing.</p>
<p>They changed the system last year to an online automated system which had tons of bugs and a lot of people were screwed over from that. Basically it goes by credits, all rooms up for grabs (except the ones promised for freshmen). The more credits you have the sooner you can sign up. Rooms for freshmen are reserved before anyone gets a pick. And then it goes down the ranks by credits. Which means once again sophomores get shafted. After your first year there is a VERY good chance you won't get housing. They keep increasing their incoming freshman enrollments so each year the students increase, yet the number of beds have essentially remained the same.</p>
<p>They keep saying they have plans to build a new dorm, but they also keep saying they are going to close Clove Road Apartments and Bohn is going to be condemned by the state because it is falling off a cliff. They have not budgeted new dorms yet, nor have they come up with plans or bidded to a contractor. So don't expect new dorms within the next few years. They're already a couple years behind on the new rec center (funds ran out and they got hit by some bad weather). They have however made negotiations to buy new land between the clove road apartments and the village to zone off and start building new dorms. So that's at least a step in the right direction.</p>
<p>Cliffs: Your child will get housing as a freshman, may not be on campus though. If your child is a theater major there's a good chance they'll be placed in Freeman Hall which hasn't had heat or hot water for the past 4 years, the rooms get to 40-50 degrees in the winter and no hot water makes for an interesting after shower experience of running to the bed with 5 pairs of sweats and shivering under the covers until your body goes out of shock. The other likely alternative is your child will get placed in a hotel off campus with very unreliable busing, so a vehicle will be needed. Make sure to pray a lot during your freshman semester because getting housing as a sophomore will be due to an act of God.</p>
<p>Congratulations Kayla! Montclair has a great theater program.</p>
<p>As a followup to jsheesh, the housing problem for others but freshman is a problem that has existed since my sister attended Montclair 30 years ago. It's a subject I didn't mention in my previous post. Lots of kids eventually wind up wanting to spread their wings off campus. At this school, it might happen sooner than usual - sophomore year - and not a result of their own wishes. Also, the surrounding community is beautiful, but more affluent than some college neighborhoods. Many of the available apartments local to the school are beyond the typical budget of the college student's family. As a result, the kids wind up renting a couple towns over which can dramatically impact their remaining years. Please also keep in mind that the current hotel housing is also a situation where your student is living among the general public with much less security than expected on a campus and a bar within the premises. Some kids love the setup (for obvious reasons.) I just feel the folks paying the bill should have a heads up as to some of the challenges that might be ahead for them. The theatre department looks very promising and rewarding. I still would press for the administration to live up to the same standards.</p>
<p>jsheesh...hey thanks for all the info...My d is actually a dance major...but I guess it is the same for them..?? Are you currently a student?</p>
<p>I'm a recent grad. My girlfriend is finishing up her final semester so I've been keeping up on the MSU politics. Dance and theater majors tend to end up in Freeman Hall for some reason. It is also where they put their honor students. While the dorms in Freeman aren't that nice, they're on the nice side of campus and they have better dining facilities. It's there way of pretending to make people they care about comfortable, yet they ignore the fact that the building has no heat or hot water.</p>
<p>The good thing about the Freeman dining hall is that it's less crowded, the servers aren't the ones who are fresh out of prison.. they've had time to calm down a bit and they're much nicer, outgoing and more personable. The food is also better prepared. They take food requests for upcoming meals and try to make the food healthier. The only downside is that because it's a little smaller there is less variety on food than Blanton, but I still preferred eating at Freeman.</p>
<p>But they're great in there. The guy who runs it "John" even helped my friend change his tire for a half hour. The lugs wouldn't come off and John went and got some power tools and prevented the cost of a tow. The people at the Freeman dining hall can't do enough to please the students.</p>
<p>I have gone on line to the school newspaper, which I had picked up while visiting the campus and the headline for the April 19th issue states that the Board of Trustees just approved the cost of reparing the heating units and plumbing in Freeman Hall. It also states that the $25 million contract for the new Cali School of Music has been approved also. The MT program is a joint venture between the Cali School and the Department of Theatre and Dance. We were told that new curriculum changes are being implemented for the MT program and students who are already involved in the program can, by choice, adhere to the curriculum that was already established upon entering the university or follow the new curriculum. The Gen-Eds are staying the same. The changes that MT are undergoing, by the four year plan that we were presented, strengthen and balance the core curriculum of more dance, voice, music classes and acting. The way it was originally established, students came into the program based on their strength and didn't have the right balance of classes for them to strengthen their weaknesses. This approach is being eliminated, yet students can still take more classes in any selected field (dance, music, acting) that interests them as electives.<br>
I do know that the Office of Residential Life is aware of the overall problems with housing and the concerns and is doing their best to overcome the problems. I believe that jsheesh is correct in saying that it's usuall not the freshman that experience most of the housing problems, but the upper classmen and those not taking a full load of courses. We were also told that the surrounding towns of Clifton, Wayne, Little Falls and Bloomfield have some affordable housing opportunities for students that want to live off campus, but you would need a car and would also need to check on the security of each complex in relation to the vicinity. I do hope my son ends up in Freeman by what you say. Better food and new plumbing for heat will be of benefit for him.</p>
<p>dncebltdad...Lets hope all those changes really happen. Thanks for checking these things out.</p>
<p>I found out today the dorms are full at Montclair. So if you have not (I have not)...gone online and paid the 125. you will now be put on a waitlist for a dorm. The women told me what happens is they take doubles and turn them into triples and then after the summer when all the people who said they needed a dorm (just to be safe) actually do not end up needing one, they start taking people off the list and giving them a dorm and turning triples back into doubles. I told her I live 2 hours away and did not want my d in a hotel or apt. and she said many open up after the summer but it is a chance you take. I think my d is going to Pace..for theater instead of montclair for dance....discussing tonight. Can you say Martini?????</p>
<p>LisaG - That is NOT what I was told via e-mail by the woman in charge of housing at Montclair last week. She said that freshman are GUARANTEED housing for the freshman year, and the only somewhat negative thing she said about it is that freshmen will very likely be placed in triples. I sent in the deposit last week by overnight mail with some specific housing requests, which I am hoping will be honored. I do think they try to accomodate the theatre/dance kids by putting them in Freeman, which is having the heating system repaired, and apparently has a great dining room. </p>
<p>I personally think that this is a great program with some growing pains and I am really sick of reading all the negativity on this thread. Basically one person, who has not been posting for very long at all, has everyone in an uproar. I am not sorry about that because I would rather have a heads up on a potential problem than have no warning, because you can act like the squeaking wheel who gets the grease and ask for what you want and follow up (alot). I am sure PACE has a great program and your daughter would be happy there, so the best thing for her will work out either way, but if you want the e-mail address I used last week, let me know.</p>
<p>I also agree with dancermom, i mean ive heard some bad things about the program..but the good by far outnumbers the bad... i recently talked to a guy that goes there and is graduating in '10 and i was surprised to see how much broadway credits he has, because of the amount of work he has gotten. Also, about housing, i spoke to clay james and he said im guarenteed housing and i havent even paid as yet..im not sure if i am going to this school..but im going to pay the deposit to secure a spot and then wait to hear from otterbein and indiana...i believe too many bad things have been said about this program.. and like dancermom, i dont like the negativity...</p>
<p>i hope you are not referring to me because i did not want to make the program out to be bad, i just wanted to make some corrections so everyone has the most accurate information possible.
jsheesh i am not sure this is the thread for you as you are not even a musical theatre major or current student and you seem to really hate montclair state.</p>
<p>the post is referring to jsheesh I am sure of it but he only means to help I am sure. He went to Montclair but is not there now and of course we must seek our own fresh info. No one was aiming any comments to or about comments from montclairmanmt. anyway...I agree Montclair has a great dance and mt program. what I wrote in my email about housing above is exactly what I was told on the phone yesterday. funny thing...dancermom, your info was about a week ago and this stuff changes very fast so we are probably both accurate at the time. Now my d doesnt know what she wants to do and we are all stressed and totally over this and ready to move on. good luck to all!!</p>
<p>BTW....In my opinion...There has never been negativity about Montclair's programs from anyone....only the housing which is fact.</p>
<p>i agree with lisa g.....no one said anything bad about the program that you wouldnt find anywhere else. montclair state is a great program. it has holes but that is to be expected with any program, especially one that is developing so fast</p>
<p>jsheesh was the poster I was referring to actually. Some of his information was at least partially correct, but I think he is upsetting people too much who might miss out on a great program because of it. My d is very excited about the potential and promise of this program under Clay James' direction, so that is what is important to us, although we WILL monitor the housing situation.</p>
<p>LisaG, all I was trying to suggest is that when I called Res. Life itself, I got a different answer than what I got in the two emails from the director. I think the good thing is that she is aware that there is bad word of mouth out there, because I did tell her about CC and what was being said here. The more of us parents who contact her and Clay James directly, the better the outcome for our kids' housing ultimate solution, in my opinion.</p>
<p>Kaylagurl - glad you are considering the program, and keep the faith that the best outcome will occur!</p>
<p>First of all, if anyone doesn't want to listen to my opinion and would rather trust the word of Montclair State, then go right ahead. I am not here to chase people away, rather I am here to give first hand perspective. I have known many theater majors and even dated a couple. Am I in the program? No, however, I have always said they have a great program. From my experiences they have a very good program and I recommend it. I am just trying to give people some information on the campus and university as a whole. The program is a good value, however, there are some issues at Montclair as there are with all universities.</p>
<p>I have two brothers and two sisters. Four of us are college graduates, one is still in school. Between us we have attended 5 schools and 2 community colleges. From the experiences of myself and my family, the current Montclair was the worst to deal with (my sister attended before Cole).</p>
<p>Everything I have stated on this forum has been true. It is not "partially true". You can argue you feel it's one sided, however, it is not untrue. I have no vendetta against MSU and if you talk to me in private messages, I'll tell you flat out my experiences at Montclair weren't all that bad. However, I started at MSU and beat the hotels and never got placed in Freeman with no heat for 3+ years. I have watched the issues of housing and the way Freshmen are baited into the university only to be let down after their first year.</p>
<p>I graduated from the university the fall of last year and frequently visit the campus/university to see my girlfriend. I am not someone who is detached from the university or unknown to the current politics. As said above things change all the time. For instance, just this week they announced they're finally budgeting money to fix the heat in Freeman... $50,000. No contractor was hired and nobody knows if that's even enough. Students aren't optimistic that it will be fixed. Also keep it mind it took upwards of 4 years for them to even put it in their budget. If your child attends Montclair and the heat breaks, don't expect it to get fixed for at least a few years. So while they're correcting a wrong now, keep in mind the dorms are old, and things go wrong. They do not have a good track record of fixing things and making current students comfortable.</p>
<p>The theater/music major is great. However, the university as a whole has a lot of drawbacks that parents need to weight before sending their kids to any school. The positives of going to Montclair for music/theater are simple... the program is great and Montclair is growing a competitive name for itself so graduating from Montclair will actually be worth something. The drawbacks I have listed and explained in detail: housing, poor administration and improper/unhealthy growth that hurts their college experience. When the school is all done it will be great I'm sure. However, they are not going about the changes in a way that is beneficial or considerate to current students. That's the current reality of MSU. What I'm saying isn't all that radical or far-fetched. The same responses are the knee-jerk reaction professors give to newspapers and the media.</p>